Unbreakable Friendship
by KitKatFang
Summary: Richter is having doubts about the strength of his friendship with Aster, and Aster is taking it rather hard. He wants to prove his unconditional loyalty, and Richter isn't so sure if that's a good idea-but how can he refuse the kid? Contains -VORE-


**WARNING: ** This story contains **male/male, same-size, soft, oral vore, magically non-fatal and painless digestion, as well as a male/male pairing including love confessions and kissing.** If any of these are not to your tastes, I _strongly_ suggest that you click away now. If you don't know what vore is, take a look at my profile for more information. If you are curious, I urge you to keep an open mind and respect those of us who do like it, as we are not hurting you with our personal enjoyment of such works.

**SPOILERS:** This story contains some spoilers for a certain character in **Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World.** If you don't know who Aster is, read on at your own risk.

That aside, on with the story!

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><p><em>Once again, if you do not know what <strong>VORE<strong> is, I strongly advise you to check my profile for more information._

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><p>Aster enjoys spending time with Richter. He's grateful for the half-elf's friendship, and has come to care very deeply for the older male over the years that they've worked together. He's always amazed by the redhead, and does everything he can to make sure that Richter is happy. He likes the hours they spend researching together, and how Richter's eyes light up when they compare notes and discuss their work. Aster also enjoys the companionable silences that stretch out when they're both absorbed in their work, and the silly conversations that span their limited downtime. In short, the boy loves everything about their friendship. Well, almost everything.<p>

Aster sighs, staring up at the ceiling. He glances over at the other side of the room, where Richter is sleeping. The other male has been distant as of late, and that bothers Aster. Richter avoids him in their downtime, preferring the company of the other half-elves instead. The blond frowns, thinking that things had changed after one of the new workers had talked with Richter. He doesn't know what was said, but he wonders at it, and can't figure out what it could have been to strain their friendship this way. He worries that he's done something wrong, or hasn't done something he should have. Once their friendship had gotten started, Richter hadn't seemed to care that they were different races, and Aster himself certainly doesn't care. Richter is Richter, as far as he's concerned, a person not a half-elf. It's never mattered to Aster at all, and he hopes that race isn't the problem here though from the way a few of the others treat him, he isn't so sure it has nothing to do with why Richter avoids him these days.

He sighs again, rolling onto his side with his back facing the other scientist. It hurts, feeling so disconnected from Richter, and he wants Richter to stop acting this way. Whenever he tries to bring the subject up, however, the other always manages to steer away from it again. He's starting to feel lonely, now that Richter seems to have decided the newcomer makes a better friend than he does. Aster closes his eyes, and tries to fall asleep.

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><p>Another month has gone by, and Aster finds himself alone most of the time nowadays. Richter really does seem to want to put distance between them, and has even been collaborating on research with the newcomer instead. He tries to ignore it when he hears Richter joking with the other half-elf, quickly finishing his food and returning to the lab to work again. He spends the rest of the day researching in silence, Richter not even bothering to show up and to help him finish the project they had started before all this had happened. When it's time to finish up for the day, the blond simply continues working, not wanting to leave the lab.<p>

If Richter is going to ignore him, he thinks it will be less painful to simply avoid the half-elf instead of watching him with his new friend. He continues to work for hours, until it's very late, and he still doesn't want to leave the lab. He doesn't want to return to their room, because he doesn't want to see Richter right now. Aster can feel his eyes starting to sting, and his vision blurs as tears start to fall. He feels so lonely, and the only friend he's ever had doesn't want anything to do with him. He doesn't even try to stop his tears, instead just burying his face in his arms and sobbing. Eventually the tears stop, and he sits there, keeping his head resting on his arms, staring blankly into space. He's sad and exhausted, and just gives in to sleep there at his desk.

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><p>Richter sighs sadly, finding it hard to focus on his work. It's been hard, not being by Aster's side, but it's for the best, he thinks. After all, they can't remain friends forever; the human will eventually want nothing more to do with him. It's best to break it off now, he supposes. Still, he can't help but feel unhappy. He sighs again.<p>

"Look, Abend…"

The redhead looks up at the newest half-elf to come to Sybak, remaining silent as the other takes a slow breath and continues.

"I know it's hard for you, but it's for the best. The kid's human, he can't possibly understand. I mean, most of our own don't even accept us, so there's no way he would accept you once he learns about this. And you can't very well have a proper friendship with him if you keep something so large a secret."

Richter's voice is a soft growl as he responds, "Aster's _different._ He's never _once_ cared that I'm a half-elf. He's always accepted me for who and what I am."

The other male sighs, shaking his head and saying, "Abend, you know as well as I do that he would freak out if he ever found out about this. You can't possibly think he'd simply shrug off something like this. Race is one thing; there are a few humans out there who don't mind us. But this is just too much for anybody but our own to tolerate. We've learned that, time and again when we try to get others to accept us."

The redhead sighs, defeated. "I know, Avery… But it doesn't make it any easier to do this…" He feels a hand on his shoulder, hearing the other offering words of comfort. He shakes his head, saying, "It's time for dinner…"

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><p>Richter lies in bed for several hours, thinking. His thoughts mostly revolve around Aster, and all the memories they've shared. Over the years he's come to care about the blond a lot, and he thinks that he's even come to love the human. He glances at the clock, realizing that it's quite late. Frowning, he gets up, deciding to see where the blond is. Really, the younger male should be in bed by now. Richter slowly makes his way to the lab, opening the door. He sighs, seeing the blond asleep at his desk. Really, Aster should know better than to sleep in that position. He approaches the human, planning to wake him and chide him for not sleeping in his bed, but pauses. He frowns as he realizes that there are dried tear tracks on the boys face. Why was Aster crying? Richter supposes the best way to find out would be to ask the blond, so he gently shakes the younger male awake.<p>

Aster starts, blinking sleepily up at Richter. It takes him a few moments to gather his thoughts, and when he registers that Richter has woken him up, he frowns. He turns away from the half-elf, not wanting to deal with the redhead right now. He mutters, "What do _you_ want?"

Richter is taken aback by the venom in the human's voice. Aster has never used that tone with him before, and he doesn't know quite how to react. It takes him a moment to respond, his tone surprisingly meek as he says, "Y-you weren't in bed… I was… Um…" He trails off, hearing a derisive snort from the human.

"You worried? Don't bother lying, Richter. You don't care. Why should you, though? You've got a new friend now, and you don't need a human hanging around." Aster glares at the floor, struggling to keep from crying. He doesn't even know why Richter is even bothering to pretend, the half-elf hasn't cared at all lately so why bother trying to pretend now?

Richter is silent, stunned. He frowns again, hurt. "That's not…"

Aster interrupts him, "That's not it? Really? Then why else do you avoid me, Richter? You ignore me, you look away from me when you see me, you don't talk to me anymore, and you've even ditched our projects, Richter. If you have a problem with me, fine, but just tell me the damn problem instead of trying to pretend I don't exist."

"You can't understand! You're-! I mean… It's just… You're…"

"I'm _what_, Richter? Just tell me." Aster turns, glaring at the half-elf. He doesn't bother stopping the hurt from showing. If Richter is going to break their friendship, he's not going to pretend that it doesn't hurt. Honestly, he doesn't have anybody besides Richter, so if Richter's going to do this, he wants the redhead to know how much it's hurting him.

Richter falls silent, faltering at the sight of the blond's tears. He looks away, unsure of what to say. "Look, Aster… It's just… It's not…" He sighs and slowly brings his gaze back up to meet the younger male's. "There's just something about me that you… When you find out, you won't want to have anything to do with me. It's just… It's better to just stop contact, before you find out…"

Aster hadn't expected something like this, and the human isn't sure how to respond at first. He takes a minute to gather his thoughts, then asks, "Why, Richter? I thought you'd realize that I'd still care, no matter what you told me. C'mon, Richter, what is it? It can't be that bad."

"You don't understand, Aster. Most other half-elves don't even like me because of it. I'm different…"

"You say that like I'm not." When the half elf looks up curiously, Aster smiles weakly at him. "Richter, how many other humans do you know who would voluntarily live with half-elves for years, who would count a half-elf as their best friend? Who would sacrifice the respect of the other humans? You know as well as I do they treat me just as bad as you guys, if not worse because I'm some kind of 'traitor' according to them. After everything we've been through, what could possibly make me stop caring about you?" _What could make me stop loving you? _he thinks silently, unable to admit that to the other just yet.

Richter remains silent for a while, trying to figure out what to say to that. He admits that's true, Aster is the first and only human he's ever encountered to genuinely not care at all about race. Oh, sure, he's met a few others who pretend to not care, but they were just trying to seem better than they were. Aster, though… Not one of the half-elves has ever been able to make him dislike them based on anything they've said to him. Hell, some of them even _tried_ to get him to react to something based on race, but Aster has never once showed himself to be anything but kind and accepting. Still, Richter thinks that this is different. After all, there are no other known creatures that can do exactly what his kind can do.

"Look, Aster… You wouldn't believe me even if I told you what I can do."

"Then show me."

Richter looks up in surprise. The blond is looking at him, a strange mix of frustration and determination on his face. Richter is about to speak when Aster starts again.

"You said it's something you can do, right? So show me, if you don't think I'd believe your words. Show me what could possibly be so shocking, so terrible that I wouldn't want anything to do with you. What's the worst that could happen? You already seem convinced I'll hate you."

Richter just stares at Aster, unsure of what to do. He could show the blond, of course, but that could end very badly if he decides to inform the other humans. It doesn't seem like the kind of thing that Aster would do, but Richter doesn't think he can take that risk. He won't be the only one in danger, after all—all of the other half-elves would be put in danger as there is no way to tell those who have such powers from those who don't. How, then, can he justify showing the younger male his abilities?

Aster waits silently for whatever Richter will decide. He's a bit unnerved by how hard Richter is thinking, but he still wants to know. Richter means everything to him, and he's determined to prove to the half-elf that nothing can change that. He's a bit worried, though, because Richter looks like he's thinking of something that even he doesn't like, and that can't be good.

Richter tries to think of a way to ensure that Aster can't cause trouble if he can't handle the truth, but nothing he can think of really ends well. He sighs, supposing that there really is only one way to handle this. He thinks that if he demonstrates on the blond himself, he can ensure that Aster never gets a chance to tell anyone if he freaks out. The idea doesn't sit well with Richter, though, and he really would prefer not to have to do so.

"Aster… Are you absolutely sure that you want to know? I'd have to make sure you can't cause trouble if you can't accept the truth. I don't want to do that, Aster, but I can't take the risk that you might cause harm to us if you tell anybody…"

Aster catches the meaning to Richter's words, and is taken aback. He can't understand what could be so secret that his life would be in danger if he were to think of telling anybody about it. It makes him very uneasy, but he promised Richter that he would always accept him. He takes a deep breath and manages to keep his voice steady as he says, "I still want to know, Richter. I promised you that I'd always accept you, and if I can't keep that promise… Well, maybe I deserve to be silenced."

Richter just stares at Aster, stunned. He can tell that the human is uneasy, that he's scared, and yet he's still willing to go through with it, still willing to find out whatever secret it is that Richter's been keeping from him. He seems to genuinely want to know, and part of Richter longs to tell him, to be accepted completely by the blond. He remains silent for several moments, wondering if he really could go through with silencing the blond if he needed to. He wonders if he should talk to Avery, to have some form of backup if he can't bring himself to handle Aster should the younger male decide he can't handle the truth. He decides against it, thinking that if he does agree to this, he should be the one to handle it.

After a few more moments of silently debating with himself, he turns around and heads for the door. Richter doesn't glance back, but he pauses for a moment as he says, "If you want to know, come back to the room."

Aster is more uneasy seeing how unsure Richter seems, but he quickly hurries after the half-elf. He closes the door to their room after him, and hesitates, watching Richter.

Richter sits down on his bed, still looking uneasy. He motions Aster over, and averts his gaze as the blond stands in front of him. The half-elf takes a moment to think over how best to approach this, then says, still looking at the ground off to the side, "…Take your clothes off. You can leave your underwear on, but take the rest off."

Aster just stares at Richter for a moment. He's very confused, but he reminds himself that he wanted to know the truth and he won't back out now. He hesitantly strips, feeling his face burn. Since Richter still isn't looking at him, he murmurs, "Okay… Um, what now…?"

Richter takes a deep, steadying breath, and indicates that Aster should sit beside him. Once the blond does so, he shifts on the bed and quickly pulls Aster into his lap. Ignoring the startled sound from the human, he mutters, "Just close your eyes, don't struggle, and everything will be alright. I promise." He's a bit surprised by how quickly the human complies. He hesitates again, still unsure if he should go through with this. The half-elf closes his eyes, unable to look at the human as he carefully takes the blond's head into his mouth.

Aster lets out a squeak of surprise as his head is encased in something wet and warm, his eyes snapping open only to realize he can't see anything. His first instinct is to struggle, to pull himself back, but he feels Richter's grip on him tighten as he tenses and remembers the redhead's instructions not to resist. The human forces himself to relax again, squeezing his eyes shut tightly and reminding himself that whatever's happening, Richter has promised that everything will be alright. He shudders slightly as something slimy moves against his cheek, leaving a trail of something wet against his skin. The blond feels himself moving forwards a bit, feeling Richter's grip shift on him a little, and he finds his head pushed into a tight space with slick, soft walls stretching around it as his shoulders are surrounded by warmth.

More and more of his body is pushed into what is, he has come to realize is, despite how impossible it seems, Richter's mouth. He understands now why Richter assumed he would be unable to believe him, and thinks that it's true—if he weren't in the process of being swallowed whole and alive by the redhead, he'd have just assumed Richter was messing with him. By this point he knows that even if he wanted to go back on his promise to Richter, he couldn't escape so he focuses on the sensations around him. He blushes as, now that he thinks about it, it actually feels kind of good. He likes the way it feels when Richter licks at him, and he's not sure how but he can sense that despite the very firm grip the half-elf's body has on him, Richter is doing his best to be gentle about the whole thing. He can clearly hear the older male's heartbeat above him slightly, and he finds it a bit relaxing. He really has no idea how much time has passed, unsure if it's been only a few moments or many minutes, when he feels his head's decent met with resistance.

A more powerful swallow from the redhead pushes his head down, and he realizes he's entering Richter's stomach. A few more strong swallows from the half-elf push his shoulders in, and he can feel the older male's lips around his waist. He blushes as Richter grips his legs firmly and his hips are pushed into the older male's mouth. With most of his weight inside of Richter now, he can feel Richter shift his position, tilting his head back. He's aware that Richter isn't holding him with his hands anymore, and thinks he feels Richter lean back a little as he continues to swallow. It's only a few more powerful gulps before his feet are slipping into the stomach along with the rest of him.

Richter leans back a bit, propping himself up with his hands. He can't deny that he's actually enjoying this, finding himself smiling as he feels the human wriggling around inside of him. He can tell from the movements that Aster isn't struggling, but curious. He keeps his eyes closed, focusing on the feeling and the lingering taste of the human on his tongue. Aster had tasted surprisingly good, he thinks, and he almost regrets not taking longer to savor the human's flavor. After another minute or two he feels Aster settle down inside of him, and he finds himself starting to feel a bit nervous again.

He hesitantly looks down at his distended midsection, bringing one hand to rest on the Aster-shaped bulge. He feels the blond move a little bit in response, but Aster settles down after a second or two. Richter remains silent for a few moments before pulling his glasses off and setting them on the bedside table. The movement causes Aster to squirm again, but the half-elf can tell that Aster's just reacting to a change in position rather than trying to escape. He carefully lays down on the bed, still unsure of what, exactly, he should do next. He remains silent for a while, thinking.

Aster is stunned by what's happened, but he trusts Richter. He feels Richter shift position, and thinks the half-elf must be laying down now. He's a bit nervous, but Richter has promised that everything will be fine as long as he doesn't resist. The blond finds himself focusing on the feeling of the half-elf's belly around him, amazed how easily it stretches to hold him and with his movements. He likes that it's soft, and the blond has always enjoyed being close to Richter which makes this even better. It's warm, too, almost as if he had been wrapped up tight in a slimy blanket. The warmth makes him not care about how wet and slimy it is, though. After a while of just remaining relaxed, he starts to wonder what will happen next.

Giving some thought to the subject, he recalls how Richter had told him that he would need to be silenced if he couldn't be trusted, and he finds himself shuddering slightly at the thought of what fate would await him if he failed to convince Richter that he really is alright with this. And he is; he doesn't have the least problem with Richter being able to do this. He know that Richter would never use this ability to cause unnecessary pain, and how conflicted the half-elf had seemed appears to indicate that he's reluctant to use his abilities to kill. The human isn't sure about other half-elves with such abilities, but he doubts they'd attack people for no reason and sees no need to bother telling anybody about said abilities as such. Still, he worries a little about how he can convince Richter he really isn't going to be a problem. The half-elf isn't the most trusting person, and a matter this large isn't one he's going to just accept somebody's word on so easily.

The minutes stretch by in silence as Aster continues to think, before he finally just decides to be honest and hope for the best. If he fails to convince Richter, well… He cringes at the thought of being digested alive, but part of him thinks that at the very least he'd be with Richter at the end, and the thought brings him a little comfort no matter the fact that the older male would be his killer. The redhead means everything to him, and if he can't convince Richter to spare him then he doesn't really want to live anyway, it has hurt far too much without the other's friendship.

Richter is getting a bit worried by how quiet and still the human is inside of him, and he wonders what will happen now. Will Aster accept him, or will he have to keep the blond silent? He thinks that at the very least he can ensure that it's painless for the human, but he doesn't want to have to take the boy's life. Eventually the half-elf can't take the silence anymore, quietly asking, "Aster? Are you alright in there?"

Aster starts at the sound of Richter's voice, but smiles faintly to himself. Richter sounds concerned, and he thinks that's a good sign—if Richter is worried about him, Richter probably cares about him and maybe he'll be more likely to believe him. The blond snuggles against the lining of the half-elf's stomach, responding, "Yeah, I'm fine, Richter. I really don't get why you were so worried I wouldn't accept you, though. I mean, it's not like you go around eating random people, so why should I care if you can do this? Besides, it's kind of nice!"

Richter makes a small noise of surprise. Not only is Aster claiming to accept him, he's actually claiming to enjoy this? The half-elf is rather confused on how that's possible. "What do you mean, 'it's kind of nice'?"

"Well, it's soft and warm. It's kinda comfy, actually, ahahah…" Aster can feel his face heat up as he trails off with a quiet, somewhat embarrassed laugh. It's the truth, though, and he won't deny it.

Richter is taken aback by this confession, not having expected anything even remotely close to that at all as a possible reaction from the human. He finds himself smiling broadly, and wraps his arms around his Aster-filled gut, nuzzling against the human inside of him gently. "I'm glad, Aster. I'm so relieved… I was so afraid you'd be freaked out and hate me…"

Aster returns the half-elf's nuzzle and murmurs, "I could never hate you, Richter. Never." He hesitates, almost continuing but he holds back, unsure how Richter would react to the truth of his feelings. He's happy just being friends with the older male, really, and he doesn't want to do anything that could risk spoiling that.

Richter is glad for Aster's words, but something about the boy's tone seems different to him. He doesn't think he's ever quite heard Aster use that tone before, but he likes it. Something about it puts him at ease, and he feels like he can tell Aster anything. He doesn't really realize what he's doing until the words have left his mouth when he murmurs, "I love you, Aster."

Aster freezes, his jaw dropping at Richter's statement. He can't believe what he's heard, yet at the same time he finds he doesn't doubt the truth in the half-elf's confession at all. He shivers, slightly, amazed. He manages to gather his thoughts as he can feel Richter tense around him, and he suspects that Richter hadn't meant to admit it out loud. He supposes that Richter must have had the same worries about such a confession as he himself has had, but his fears have faded now and he responds, "I love you too, Richter."

Richter can't believe his ears at first, sure that this must be his imagination making him hear such things. But he hears Aster murmur, "I love you so much," and he can't help but be relieved. Aster returns his feelings, and accepts his abilities. He thinks that this is more than he could ever have hoped for, and hugs his belly more tightly, making a noise of delight. He allows himself to relax, carefully managing to roll over onto his back and gently rubbing his stomach. He feels Aster rubbing back at him, and he sighs happily. He's amazed, really, that the night has gone from terrible to incredibly wonderful in such a way, but he's grateful for it.

The pair spends the next two hours talking quietly and just enjoying the closeness that Richter's ability allows them to experience before Richter begins to wonder how, exactly, to tell the human about the rest of his abilities. He supposes he should just come right out and say something, since Aster seems unlikely to freak out on him. Still, he's a bit worried because it's not as simple as just holding the boy inside of him. He quietly murmurs the blond's name, then says, "There's more to my abilities… I can do more than just hold you inside me like this…" He trails off, feeling uneasy again.

Aster wonders a bit at Richter's hesitation now that he's already accepted what he can do so far, as well as admitted his feelings to the half-elf. Still, he doesn't want Richter to feel uneasy so he nuzzles against the older male's insides and says, "What else can you do, Richter?"

Richter is glad that Aster sounds curious rather than nervous and he relaxes a bit. He's still unsure of how Aster will react, but he forces himself to explain. "If I were to… Digest you…" He pauses as he feels Aster tense up and gives his stomach a gentle rub. "I won't, I promise, but if I did… I could make it painless for you. It wouldn't hurt at all. And… It wouldn't kill you. I know it seems impossible, but I'm sure just a few hours ago you'd have thought it would be impossible for me to swallow you at all. It's… Well, I'm not really sure exactly why it's even possible, Aster, I only have a vague idea of how this even works in the first place…"

Aster is quite surprised by what Richter is saying, but he agrees that just a few hours prior to this he'd have laughed at the idea of relaxing in Richter's stomach. He finds himself more curious than unnerved by Richter's words and asks, "What is that 'vague idea of how it works' that you have, Richter?"

Richter smiles to himself, glad that the human seems to believe him and answers, "It's something only half-elves can do, and not all half-elves have these abilities. The best we can come up with is that it's some sort of mutation. These abilities are linked to our ability to use magic, but as far as we know there aren't any elves that can do such things. But those of us who have such abilities are… We're not trusted by the other half-elves..." Richter trails off, feeling a bit uneasy again.

Aster thinks he understands better now why Richter had been avoiding him. If Richter had felt like an outcast even among the other half-elves, it's no surprise he wouldn't have believed Aster could accept him. Aster frowns thoughtfully after a moment, and says, "Hey, Richter… Um, so, is Avery like you? You two were spending a lot of time together…"

"Yeah, he's like me. We're the only two here, though, at least as far as we know. It's not really something we usually ask each other, because of how we're distrusted by the others… He's the one who convinced me to cut ties with you, Aster. I… I was worried about what would happen anyway, but… I shouldn't have listened to him; I should have trusted you."

Aster rubs the lining of Richter's stomach gently, saying, "It's alright, Richter. I understand why you were worried. And Avery would have every reason to be worried, too. I'm just glad that we're friends again, Richter."

Richter quietly murmurs in agreement, yawning. He's tired from the extremely emotional night, and supposes they should get some rest. He's about to offer to let Aster out when the human speaks up again.

"Richter, I… I want you to, um…" The blond hesitates for a moment, feeling a bit awkward, but he forces himself to finish his statement. "I want you to digest me."

Richter's jaw drops, and he props himself up on one arm, staring at the human-shaped lump in his stomach. "What? No! I'm not going to do that, Aster."

"Why not? You said it wouldn't hurt, and that I'd be okay. I _trust_ you, Richter. I trust you completely, with my life. I want to prove that to you. You can tell me I don't need to, but I _want_ to. Please…?"

Richter flops back down, sighing. He has to admit, he doesn't want to let Aster out just yet, and this would give him an excuse to keep the human inside him for the entire night, but he still feels uneasy about it. Yet he does crave that proof that Aster really does trust him completely, and this would also allow him to prove to Aster that he has no intention of harming him. He rubs his stomach gently and murmurs, "Alright, Aster. If you're sure. You'll be back to normal in the morning, outside of my body."

"Okay." Aster snuggles against Richter's insides again, feeling completely at ease now. He's a bit surprise that there's no fear at all, but he's glad for that. The blond is also finding the way Richter is rubbing him to be really relaxing, and he doesn't notice that digestion has begun at first. He's not aware of the liquid filling the stomach with him until he realize his body is starting to tingle, and he can hear a faint hissing sound. But it doesn't hurt, and he smiles. He knows from past experience with exposure to a weaker acid (he silently curses his clumsiness in the lab that day as he remembers the incident in which he'd spilled some on his hand) that he should be in pain by now, as well as logically speaking since he can tell that his skin is dissolving he knows it should hurt. Yet somehow, impossibly, he feels nothing but a _pleasant _tingling sensation.

Richter yawns sleepily, but forces himself to stay awake despite how tired he is. He doesn't allow himself to close his eyes until he senses that Aster has fallen asleep inside of him. When he closes his eyes, he's asleep almost instantly.

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><p>Glancing at the clock, the brown-haired half-elf pushes himself to his feet and heads towards the sleeping quarters, wondering what could be keeping Richter. The other male is never late, and Avery wonders if he's feeling ill. Reaching the door to the room Richter shares with that human boy, he knocks sharply several times, calling, "Abend, are you in there? You're late to begin work by over an hour." Receiving no response, he opens the door and approaches the sleeping redhead. He stops and stares at the other half-elf, startled by what he sees.<p>

Richter is sleeping peacefully, a content smile on his face. His arms are wrapped around a stomach that is visibly distended a bit, and Aster's clothes are on the floor with the human nowhere to be seen. He shifts a little in his sleep, a soft gurgle coming from his gut.

Avery just stares for a few moments before gripping Richter by the shoulder and shaking him roughly until his eyes slowly open. As the redhead blinks sleepily up at him, yawning, the brunette mutters, "Abend, what happened? Where's Aster?"

Richter, barely awake and desperately wanting to go back to sleep, just grunts in response and closes his eyes again. When it becomes clear that the other half-elf has no plans to simply leave him alone, he mutters curtly, "Go 'way…" This fails to make Avery leave him be, however, and simply prompts a repletion of his previous questions. Richter groans softly, finally muttering, "Told him last night 'bout swallowin' him."

Avery just shakes his head, realizing the answer to his question about the human's current location—more accurately, the current location of what's left of the former human. He thinks this is exactly why he didn't want Richter to tell the kid, and he supposes that Richter will be unhappy when he's properly awake. The brown-haired half-elf just shakes his head again and turns, murmuring, "Right, I'll leave you to finish sleeping him off. I'll see you later…"

Richter promptly falls right back to sleep once Avery has left the room.

* * *

><p>Yawning, Richter stretches and opens his eyes. He feels strangely happy, and finds himself smiling. It's a minute or two before he remembers the events of the previous night, and he places one hand over his now-empty stomach. After a moment of thought, he gets himself ready for the day and fishes around in Asters' pile of clean clothes (he really doesn't understand why the human doesn't just put them away) for something for the blond to wear. After laying the clothes out, he closes his eyes and focuses, beginning to murmur something after a few moments he opens his eyes.<p>

He watches as a soft glow of light finishes rising from his skin, and forms itself into a familiar shape, lying on the bed. When the glow fades, Aster is sleeping peacefully in its place. Richter gently pulls the human into his arms and holds him close, still amazed at how much Aster trusts him.

Aster stirs slowly, yawning. He can feel himself pressed against something warm, and snuggles against it happily. After a few moments he opens his eyes and blinks blearily up at Richter. He mumbles a greeting to the half-elf, and then snuggles against Richter's chest again. He remembers what had happened last night, and he thinks he really wouldn't mind it if Richter swallowed him again sometime. It had been nice being so close to the half-elf, he thinks.

Richter nuzzles against the blond gently, quietly asking, "How are you feeling, Aster?"

"I'm great, Richter. That was amazing last night. Thank you, Richter." Aster smiles happily up at the redhead, hoping Richter won't let go of him too quickly.

"That's good." Richter watches the blond for a moment, thinking. He gently cups the boy's chin in one hand, tilting his face up. After a moment of hesitation, he closes the distance between them and kisses the blond gently.

Aster makes a muffled sound of surprise, but he quickly wraps his arms around Richter and returns the kiss. It's far too brief for his tastes, but he hopes that there will be more in the future. He smiles at Richter and says, "I love you so much, Richter."

Richter simply kisses him again in response.


End file.
